How Much Is The New Stimulus Package

Your Tax Return And Stimulus Check Eligibility

The Government will determine your eligibility for the third round of direct stimulus payments through the tax return you may have already filed.

The deciding factor will be your Adjusted Gross Income , or your gross income with adjustments to income deducted.

Your gross income is the money you earn throughout the year. From this sum, you can deduct various expenses such as those you incur through retirement account contributions, student loan interest, alimony payments, etc.

The IRS has published a step-by-stepguide on how you can determine your AGI.

How About Homeless People

About $5 billion will be allocated to help the homeless, including the conversion of properties like motels into shelters.Another $5 billion will be used for emergency housing vouchers to help several groups of people from the homeless to people at risk of homelessness, including survivors of domestic violence find stable housing.

Health Insurance

Why Is A Second Stimulus Check Important For The Bill

A second stimulus check has had wide bipartisan support ever since the CARES Act passed. Over the last several months everyone from President Donald Trump and President-elect Joe Biden to members of Congress, economists and everyday people have advocated for another direct payment.

Last week, Trump more money than theyre talking about in stimulus checks. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany did not say whether Trump would refuse to sign a stimulus package that didnt include a second check, but said Tuesday that Trump would really like to see those stimulus checks in there.

A variety of factors could have contributed to a second stimulus check making its way into the final bill, from popular opinion and presidential preference to that complicated bipartisan rejiggering mentioned above that freed up $160 billion, enough for a smaller stimulus check than before.

What we do know is that stimulus checks arent cheap. The IRS said this summer that it had spent $270 billion sending out 160 million checks, and on Monday, Sen. Mitt Romney, a Republican who has been involved in crafting the bipartisan stimulus proposal, forecast a cost of $300 billion if the checks were once again included for $1,200 per person. Republicans reportedly bridled at the cost.

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New Stimulus Package Update: When Will The Stimulus Check Arrive

The stimulus money promised under the American Rescue Plan began to hit the bank accounts of many Americans on March 17, 2021 the first official payment date. Treasury and Internal Revenue Service officials have guaranteed that the relief packages will soon reach all eligible citizens. The payments will be released in batches over several weeks, with some coming in the mail in the form of checks or debit cards. The Treasury Department has been working with financial institutions to try to ensure that payments arrive more quickly this time around than they did last year.

What Can Schools Use This Money For

Lots of things. The bill green-lights items school leaders need to address the needs of their individual schools anything already allowed under the main federal education law, ESSA, or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and expenditures that let school districts continue operations and to keep employing their existing staff. Also specifically OK:

• Efforts to specifically help low-income children or students, children with disabilities, English learners, racial and ethnic minorities, students experiencing homelessness, and foster care youth.
• Supplies for cleaning school buildings
• Technology to support remote instruction
• Mental health services
• Efforts to address learning loss
• School building upgrades and repairs for reducing COVID transmission, including improving ventilation

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Stimulus And Relief Package 2

The second relief package, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act , or Phase Two, was signed into law on March 18, 2020. The Act allocated a budget for relief that included the following provisions:

• Providing money for families who rely on free school lunches in light of widespread school closures
• Mandating that companies with fewer than 500 employees provide paid sick leave for those suffering from COVID-19, as well as providing a tax credit to help employers cover those costs
• Providing nearly $1 billion in additional unemployment insurance money for states, as well as loans to states to fund unemployment insurance
• Funding and cost waivers to make COVID-19 testing free for everyone

Separately, on March 18, 2020, the Federal Housing Administration and Federal Housing Finance Agency implemented foreclosure and eviction moratoriums for single-family homeowners whose mortgages are FHA-insured or backed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. The eviction moratorium on FHA and other government-backed loans was extended to Sept. 30, 2021. Additionally, the FHFA announced on September 24, 2021, that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac would continue to offer COVID-19 forbearance to multifamily property owners who experience a financial hardship due to the COVID-19 emergency.

The American Rescue Plan Act

Following the inauguration of Joseph R. Biden as president, the new Democratic majority began taking steps to pass a new $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package to deliver further help, called the American Rescue Plan Act.

The plan, which was passed by both houses of Congress and signed into law by President Biden on March 11, 2021, calls for a nationwide COVID-19 vaccination program, $1,400-per-person relief checks, financial support for small businesses, funding to helps schools reopen, expanded and extended unemployment insurance payments, rent subsidies, and more. The American Rescue Plan also includes a provision that student loan forgiveness issued between Jan. 1, 2021, and Dec. 31, 2025, will not be taxable to the recipient.

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Advance Child Tax Credit

Even if you dont pay any taxes, you may qualify for a refund of the CTC.

The CTC was expanded under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 for tax year 2021 only. If you are eligible, you should have begun receiving advance Child Tax Credit payments on July 15. The payments will continue monthly through December 2021. Under ARPA, families are eligible to receive:

• Up to $3,000 per qualifying child between ages 6 and 17
• Up to $3,600 per qualifying child under age 6

The Internal Revenue Service began sending out letters in early June to more than 36 million families who may be eligible for the monthly payments. Most families do not need to do anything to get their payments, as long as theyve filed their 2020 or 2019 tax return. Learn more about the letter and how it can help you determine your eligibility.

Your Obamacare Policy Will Become More Affordable

The new law will lower health insurance costs for millions of Americans who buy individual or family policies through the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare. It will temporarily cap premium costs at 8.5% of income for all consumers, including those whose incomes fall above the threshold for government premium subsidies.

This means that consumers making more than 400% of the federal poverty level or $51,520 for an individual in 2021 will see their premium costs contained for the first time since the laws inception. Having to pay the full cost of coverage often put health insurance out of reach, even for more affluent households. Those with lower incomes who currently qualify for subsidies will receive even more assistance under the American Rescue Plan, lowering their premium costs further.

Older Americans pay the highest premium costs, so they will see the biggest savings under the bill. A 64-year-old with an income of $58,00 would save nearly $8,000 annually on premium costs, according to a Health Affairs analysis of Congressional Budget Office projections.

Whats more, under the new law the government will subsidize the cost of COBRA coverage through the end of September, so those who leave their jobs or are laid off dont need to pay full price to continue their employer-sponsored coverage through that time.

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Still Living Paycheck To Paycheck

While the stimulus checks and now-expired Child Tax Credit provided direct aid to families, “most federal aid programs miss the mark, and only reach a fraction of the intended recipients,” noted Greg Nasif, political director of Humanity Forward.

He added, “They barely functioned even before the pandemic and they leave parents with a full-time job navigating bureaucratic hurdles.” In his view, providing “speedy, efficient, direct cash support” is the best option for helping struggling families.

Many people never applied for unemployment benefits because they didn’t think they were eligible, while others may have given up due to long waits and other issues.

Even those who qualified for aid didn’t always receive it. Only 4 in 10 jobless workers actually received unemployment aid, according to a from economist Eliza Forsythe.

Commercial Paper Funding Facility

On March 17, 2020, the Fed established the Commercial Paper Funding Facility , which purchased short-term debt known as commercial paper to ensure that those markets stay liquid.

On March 23, 2020, the Fed broadened the variety of commercial paper it would buy to lower the pricing of the debt. This was actually a relaunch of a program that ran during the Great Recession when many businesses were hurt as liquidity in the commercial paper markets dried up.

While it has no set limit on the amount it purchased, the CPFF stopped purchasing debt on March 31, 2021, and the SPV will continue to be funded until its assets mature. The Treasury Department made a $10 billion equity investment in the CPFF from its ESF.

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$600 Direct Individual Payments And $300/week Unemployment Benefits

• The American Rescue Plan Act

On Dec. 21, 2020, Congress approved a 2,124-page, $2.3 trillion funding package consisting of a $900 billion end-of-the-year COVID-19 stimulus bill attached to a $1.4 trillion omnibus spending bill to fund the government through Sept. 30, 2021. After a delay, former President Donald Trump signed the bill six days later.

The CAA stimulus legislation included $300 per week in additional jobless benefits, direct payments of $600 to individuals, $325 billion in small business loans, more than $80 billion for schools, and $69 billion for vaccine development and deployment. Below are the details on what the CAA legislation included.

Who Qualifies For The Third Stimulus Check

Millions of Americans who were eligible for the $600 second stimulus checks could qualify for the third round of stimulus payments up to $1,400. However, many high-earning taxpayers who were eligible for previous stimulus checks are now excluded. The plan narrows income eligibility to exclude individuals earning over $80,000 and couples making over $160,000:

• Singles phase out at AGIs between $75,000 and $80,000.
• Heads of household phase out at AGIs between $112,500 and 120,000.
• Couples phase out at AGIs between $150,000 and $160,000.

Keep in mind that this is different from the sliding scale that was used to determine eligibility for previous stimulus payments. The IRS reduced second stimulus checks by 5% for the total amount made over the AGI limit. This means that payments went down by $5 for every $100 over the limit.

The table below breaks down third stimulus payments based on narrower income ranges for singles and joint tax filers:

If you want to get a specific breakdown, SmartAssets third stimulus check calculator will give you an estimate based on your filing status, AGI and dependents.

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How To Get The New Stimulus Payments

There isnt a difference between how youre going to get the new stimulus payments. Same as the previous one, your 2019 tax return will be taken into consideration. If you havent filed a 2019 tax return, then the 2018 tax return will be whats used when determining eligibility. If your income is less than $75,000 as single or $150,000 if married and filing jointly, you will get your stimulus payment automatically.

If you havent received your stimulus payment, you can check the status of it on the IRS website using the Get My Payment. Read more on how to check the status of stimulus payment.

How Much Will My School District Get

As a rough rule of thumb, districts can expect approximately 2.2 times whatever they got from the last federal aid package.

Like the prior relief bills, the money is distributed in a way that closely tracks poverty, which will lead to large differences in what school districts get. Although the average new funding per public school student is $2,500, some high-poverty districts will get several thousand dollars more per student.

For instance, Los Angeles schools will be getting over $6,000 per student, according to an analysis by EdSource, while Chicago will receive about $5,200 per student.

Keep in mind that since districts will be in charge of most of the money, its impossible at this point to estimate how much a given school will receive.

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Are There Any Other Changes

• For the purposes of calculating the credit in the 2021 tax year, taxpayers could choose to use their 2019 income if it was higher than 2021, according to a Senate aide.

• People who otherwise would be eligible but whose children do not have Social Security numbers will be permitted to claim the version of the credit available to childless households. This change is permanent.

• Taxpayers wont be disqualified for the credit in 2021 until they have investment income of $10,000, up from $3,650. This change will be permanent, with the $10,000 threshold indexed to inflation.

How Much Is The Third Stimulus Check

You will get a full stimulus check payment of $1,400 if you make up to $75,000 annually, are the head of a household and make up to $112,500, or a couple who file jointly and make $150,000.

If you make more than that, your stimulus check will be smaller. And you will not get a check if you make $80,000 or more a year, are the head of a household who makes at least $120,000, or jointly file as a couple at $160,000.

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Will Private Schools Get Anything

Yes. Of the $4.1 billion governors fund, $2.75 billion is earmarked for private schools. This amounts to about $500 per private school student nationally.

The bill says these dollars should be targeted at private schools that serve mostly low-income students and that have been most affected by COVID.

The money for private schools cannot be used for religious instruction, and it cant go to the schools directly. A public agency must provide the services or assistance or create the contract for such services.

Private schools are also barred from getting aid if they participate in the upcoming round of the Paycheck Protection Program. Under the CARES Act, some private schools benefited from both PPP money and the aid earmarked for K-12 schools.

There Is Little Talk Of More Payments Despite Record Covid

Covid-19 cases in the US are continuing to rise – follow latest news – with never before seen numbers of cases rocking the country. The latest national figure, from January 9, had 313,061 new cases. While this increase, more than 200 percent higher than two weeks ago, is large, it isn’t reflected by a similar increase in deaths. Compared to two weeks ago, 16 percent more people have died. Cases are looking like they are peaking, but reported cases are always lower on weekends, so a fuller picture will be known later in the week.

While the situation was looking especially grim at the turn of the new year, vaccines are continuing to be effective against serious illness. Despite cases being at the worst level of the pandemic, there has been no move in Congress to pass another stimulus check.

How contagious is Omicron?

Sam Ghali, M.D.

A more pressing concern has been the amount of people needing to be off work while isolating with the disease. This has been a contributing factor in the CDC reducing the recommended time to isolate with the illness. Now, people need only isolate for five days, with no requirement to test negative before returning to work. This has garnered criticism as people are potentially being pushed back into the workplace while they could be infectious to others.

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Is $54 Billion For K

Yes and no. Thats an average of roughly $1,000 per public school student in the U.S. . Its also close to the total of what the federal government spends on K-12 schools in a normal year. And its more than four times as much as Congress provided to schools in the CARES Act from March.

But schools could see much of that money eaten up by cuts to state budgets. After significant wrangling, Congress didnt end up including extra money to make up for state budget shortfalls caused by the pandemic recession. And the pandemic has added significant expenses for schools, just as students are likely to need extra academic help, which can be costly to provide. Public school groups had pushed for more money, between $150 billion and $250 billion.

For All Or Most Americans

• Introduce legislation to reform unemployment insurance to automatically adjust the length and amount of benefits unemployed workers receive depending on the economy
• Extend expanded Affordable Care Act premium tax credits, which were added to the previous American Rescue Plan
• Make the Earned Income Tax Credit Expansion for childless workers permanent, to pull low-wage essential workers out of poverty
• Give IRS authority to regulate paid tax preparers to deal with some preparers with high error rates, which costs taxpayers large fees

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